In the field of commercial and industrial flooring, there is a need for flooring material which is wear resistant and also resistant to penetration and staining or loss of color from contact with petroleum and other chemicals. Hard surface materials, such as ceramic tile, have been widely used for commercial and industrial flooring. Ceramic tiles retain their color, resist staining and can be produced with a textured surface to reduce slipping. The ceramic tile flooring is often installed over a concrete or stone substrate. A problem with ceramic tile flooring is that the flooring will not flex and may break when an impact is received from an object, which has, for example, been inadvertently dropped on the flooring.
This problem has been addressed by adding a rubbery layer on the concrete base beneath the tile, see U.S. Pat. No. 4,567,704 to Bernett. The rubbery layer provides some degree of resiliency to the floor and reduces the tendency of tiles to break upon receiving an impact while the hard surface of the ceramic tile provides the desired appearance and durability. The rubbery layer is also stretchable and prevents shifting and cracking of the substrate from propagating to the tile.
This type of multi-layer flooring system disadvantageously requires that the layers be bonded together at the job site. Typical installation involves the use of an epoxy adhesive with the flooring system being applied in layers at the site. The top layer may be ceramic tile or an epoxy-based material which cures after being applied. The installation process is more difficult and time consuming than the installation of a floor consisting of modular tiles which require only the application of adhesive, setting of the tiles and perhaps, grouting. The multiple layers are necessary to provide the protection from cracking of the tiles due to impact and due to shifting of the concrete or stone substrate.
Multi-layer flooring systems with an epoxy-based top layer also suffer from blistering and delamination of the layers produced by hydrostatic water pressure. Such pressure occurs when moisture rises through the concrete or stone substrate and cannot dissipate laterally through the epoxy adhesive. Multi-layer flooring systems with a ceramic tile top layer may also have tiles loosened or broken from hydrostatic water pressure.
There is a need for a multi-layer floor system, in the form of a plurality of color fast textured surface modular tiles, said tiles including a base layer capable of dissipating moisture to greatly reduce hydrostatic pressure, a flexible membrane layer which is stretchable and resilient and a top layer providing a surface with a hardness and durability comparable to ceramic tile, and there is a need for such a multi-layer floor system which can be easily installed in the manner of an ordinary tile floor.